Manchester City manager Pep Guardiola has expressed his disappointment over Manchester United striker Zlatan Ibrahimovic as he feels the latter should not have used media to criticize him.
The 34-year old Swede has described Guardiola as a ‘spineless coward’ in his autobiography after their time at Camp Nou where the Catalan have not used Zlatan to his potential.
Zlatan and Pep are set to renew their rivalry this week as United and City are set for one of the highly awaited games of the season- The Manchester Derby. The fixture has taken a huge spotlight with Jose Mourinho and Pep Guardiola taking over reigns at the two Manchester clubs.
Speaking ahead of the match, Guardiola said: ‘Ibrahimovic used his book to explain what he believes, he had some things to say.
‘Always I was clear. Whatever I said to him I spoke face to face. I never used the media to explain what I wanted from him on the pitch. I have a lot of respect for Zlatan and what he has done in the football world and his career.
‘He has had a big impact everywhere he has been and he is an amazing talent, one of the best around.
‘The best players always have an impact. The big players always bring their talent to a club immediately. You can see they don’t need time to adapt to a new league or understand another country.’
Manchester derby would be the game of the season in Europe so far as the two giants clash against each other at Old Trafford. Manchester City would be missing Sergio Aguero who was banned by Football Association for three games after his elbow incident.